Big Horn Armory’s Heavy-Hitting 500 S&W Lever Gun — SHOT Show 2022

in Jeff Cramblit, SHOT Show 2022

The Model 89 Black Thunder is a modern tactical version of Big Horn Armory‘s Wyoming-made classic lever guns. They matched up their rifle with a modern powerhouse cartridge and then added several features so shooters could take on hogs and big bears.

Shooting the powerful 500 S&W cartridge from the handy 16-inch barreled lever gun lets you know you have a real rifle in your hands.

Big Horn Armory’s Heavy-Hitting 500 S&W Lever Gun -- SHOT Show 2022
A blend of the old west, a modern cartridge and tactical trends make a hard-hitting performer.

The rifle is outfitted with picatinny rail for mounting dots or optics but also has a classic peep sight and Marble front bead sight. The red dot is installed with quick detach mounts so it can be removed to use the iron sights. The forearm has an extension for mounting lights, lasers or a bipod.

Big Horn Armory’s Heavy-Hitting 500 S&W Lever Gun -- SHOT Show 2022
Large brake does its job well.

The large muzzle brake helps tame the recoil of the 500 S&W to allow faster follow up shots, though I doubt many will be needed with over 2,400 ft lbs of energy in every projectile. The tubular magazine of the 16 inch gun holds 6 rounds providing a 7 round total capacity.

Big Horn Armory’s Heavy-Hitting 500 S&W Lever Gun -- SHOT Show 2022
 Classic lines of the receiver and loading port complemented by the Skinner peep sight.

The Black Thunder has some heft when I handled it but it still moves well in the hands and steadies easily on to target. The trigger broke cleanly launching the large slugs downrange.

The Big Horn Armory Model 89 Black Thunder has an MSRP of around $2,700 to $3,000 depending on options chosen.

Big Horn Armory’s Heavy-Hitting 500 S&W Lever Gun -- SHOT Show 2022
Compact and powerful, the Model 89 Black Thunder.

For more information about Big Horn Armory and the Model 89 Black Thunder click HERE.

***Buy and Sell on GunsAmerica! All Local Sales are FREE!***

About the author: Jeff Cramblit is a world-class competitive shooter having won medals at both the 2012 IPSC World Shotgun Championship in Hungary and more recently the 2017 IPSC World Rifle Championship in Russia. He is passionate about shooting sports and the outdoors. He has followed that passion for over 30 years, hunting and competing in practical pistol, 3gun, precision rifle and sporting clays matches. Jeff is intimately familiar with the shooting industry – competitor, instructor, RO, range master, match director. Among his training credits include NRA Instructor, AR-15 armorer, FBI Rifle Instructor, and Officer Low Light Survival Instructor. As a sponsored shooter, Jeff has represented notable industry names such as: Benelli, 5.11 Tactical, Bushnell, Blackhawk, DoubleStar, and Hornady. He has been featured on several of Outdoor Channel’s Shooting Gallery episodes and on a Downrange TV series. Jeff’s current endeavors cover a broad spectrum and he can be found anywhere from local matches helping and encouraging new shooters as they develop their own love of the sport, to the dove field with his friends, a charity sporting clays shoot, backpack hunting public land in Montana, or the winners podium of a major championship.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Send this to a friend